So it started out really great I had no morning sickness, felt great, nothing to worry about. Then at about 28 weeks I woke up one morning, looked in the mirror and asked my husband if my face looked weird. He just said no. Well on my way to work I met my dad. He looked at me and said "I don't like the way yoyou look I think you should call your dr". Being that my dad always thinks the worst of everything I didn't pay much attention. Then I got to work. Workmate #1 "you look tired". Workmate #2 "something is wrong with your eyes". Boss (my brother) "what'd wrong with you?".
So to make everyone happy I called my dr. She told me to find the nearest pharmacy and take my... Read More

I had a normal first pregnancy but I swelled towards my third trimester my doctor was not concerned he said it was normal I delivered my son at 39weeks and 4days he was healthy but I keep swelling so my doctor prescribed me water pills and I was released. Then I got pregnant 3 years later I was good until I was 34weeks I started gaining alot of weight but I didn't feel swollen but my blood pressure was at135/90 the doctor wasn't concerned so I had an appt.
Two weeks later when I was on my way to the doctor's appt I was having a hard time breathing so when my blood pressure was taken it was at 150/99 so the nurse had me lay down for an hour then check my blood pressure it was at... Read More

Throughout my pregnancy I had always kept well, all my check ups were always good. At my 31 week check up my blood pressure was higher than normal. I was them admitted to hospital, where I was closely monitored as my blood pressure got way out of control; I was rushed down to labour ware several times. I was a walking time bomb; the protein in my urine went to 5+. This is when my consultant decided to give me am emergency c-section. I delivered my wee boy at 33 weeks: he weighed only 3lbs12oz. Thankfully he was a healthy baby and stayed in scbu for only 12 days. I have never been so scared in my life, not only for my baby's health, but my own. Mason is now 5 months and is weighing over a... Read More

Ever since I can remember, I always dreamed of having 2 kids. But pre-eclampsia has cured me of that. In July of 2012, a month before my 22nd birthday and just a month after losing my grandmother, I found out I was 5 weeks pregnant and should expect to have a St. Pattys day baby. We experienced the usual array of emotions, happy, scared, anxious, nervous, etc. I had a rather rough pregnancy. Constantly sick, couldn't eat or drink. Multiple trips to the hospital for IV fluids due the being dehydrated from the excessive vomiting. Bruised ribs from it as well. But even with all of that, baby was healthy and growing. So I was "ok" with constantly puking. I went to all my check ups, took my... Read More

I was 32 years old when my biological clock turned crazy and I had no other big dream than to have a little girl of my own. I was diagnosed with diabetes 6 years before and making 4 injections of insulin daily. I had quit smoking and tried to prepare my body for pregnancy, even if I knew very well the risks, being a doctor.
To get pregnant was the easiest thing in this story. Afterwards, I had bleeding, contractions, prolonged risk of miscarriage in the first and even second trimester... Lytic perfusions, bed repause, etc but what gave me strength was the constant doctor's message that my little baby -a girl, as I wished- was completely all right.
Beginning with the 19th... Read More

My name is Antonella Bartow, I am a pre-eclampsia hellp syndrome survivor, and this is my story. I was thirty-two weeks pregnant, and happy as could be. The nursery was...painted, the crib was in place, and the clothes were hung in the closet for the arrival of my son, Jason Anthony Bartow. February fourteenth, Valentine’s Day, was my high-risk doctor visit. I had had some tell-tale signs that made me worry -- spotting, high blood pressure, some early contractions. I tried to tell the nurse about it on that visit. Her answer was, how could I... Read More

My name is Cortney and durning my pregnancy, I had experienced extreme sleepiness and no urge to eat; I would sleep more then 12 hours at a time. After 29 weeks of testing, they came up with hypertension: I was order to be on bed rest. They immediately gave me the shot to jump start my daughter's lungs. And after 3 weeks of strict bed rest, I woke up for my doctors appointment: they took my b/p and it was 180/111. I was sent to the ER for more wonderful testing. And about 7:30 p.m they had to sign my life away and prepped me for an emergency c-section. All I can really remember is bursting out in tears and holding on to my mother, praying that my daughter was going to be ok. I knew we... Read More

My pregnancy was a breeze. Hardly any morning sickness, no other complications at all. The last few weeks of my pregnancy I had ever so slightly raised blood pressure, but nothing anyone was concerned about. Delivery was prolonged and ended up with a c section, but apart from that- all was fine and baby was great. The next day I was still in hospital eating my lunch when apparently I went very pale and became unresponsive. Medical team were called to the scene, where I then began having an eclamptic seizure lasting 20 minutes until magnesium sulphate began to work. Was sent to intensive care for numerous tests, but all came back fine- only explanation was eclampsia with no preeclampsia!... Read More

I had a perfect pregnancy. My doctor told me time and again "Cate, you can't mess this up. Your body is amazing and you'd have to work really hard to hurt her", always with a smile. It made me feel very confident in my pregnancy and I completely credit his confidence in me for my extremely positive attitude during the whole thing.
I was due July 31, 2009. On June 16 I went in for my first bi-weekly check up. By this time I knew the drill, take blood pressure, pee in a cup, Dr. Folley will feel around and measure, then I'll be on my way.
The nurse had a strange look on her face when she took my... Read More

My name's Kristina and at 29 weeks and 3 days with my first child I developed preeclampsia. I came home from work on a normal day; I had then gone out to the movies with my mother. Upon retiring home, my stepmother noticed how swollen my feet were. I was ordered to lay down and relax (I slept for 3hrs). When I woke up, I was urged to check my blood pressure which was abnormally high. I was instructed to head to the ER. When I had arrived my protienuria was extremely high and I was admitted the next morning. My blood pressure reached a high of 190/160 and a few hours later I was prepped for an emergency c-section. My daughter was born 10 weeks early weighing 2lbs 4oz. If it wasnt for the... Read More

Love, Strength, Miracle…
Hello, my name is Monika I’m from a small European country – Bulgaria. I’ll tell you story about my experience of HELLP Syndrome.
When I was 23 years old, my husband was 30. We had a dream – to have a baby and every day for two years we dreamed of that time to come. I fancied how I carry a life in... Read More

A day like today exactly one year ago I was in the hospital. I was 30 weeks pregnant and awaiting for a miracle to save our little boy's life. He only weighted 2.8 pounds. I remembered when my husband kneeled down by my bed's left side, hold my hand and we prayed together. That was the last prayer because God answered really quick. Doctors were only waiting for my health to get worst and that moment... Read More

My very healthy, 19 year-old daughter’s near-perfect pregnancy ended in tragedy, immediately after she pushed out the placenta. The cause of death was cited as “intracranial hemorrhage”.
On December 23, 2009, my daughter, Brittany, went to the OB-GYN for her weekly checkup. She was almost ready to deliver, and she had a normal checkup. On December 27, 2009, Brittany was in great physical condition, happy and feeling great! She had no known problems throughout her pregnancy, except for a little swelling of her legs during the 9th month, and unrelenting, severe back pain during the final couple of days. - On December 28,... Read More

Our story starts not unlike most. We’re a happily married couple starting a family and enjoying the ins and outs of our first pregnancy. We’ve chosen a nurse midwife that we really, really like. The weight gain is not too bad as I expected to pack on pounds. There’s not one single moment of morning sickness. Our co-ed baby shower is a hit with more than 3o in attendance. Our baby girl wants for nothing when she enters this world!
Around 30 weeks we get a phone call from the obstetrician’s office that we need to come in for an office visit. When we arrive the nurse midwife (the one we really, really like) advises us that due to the rising cost of malpractice insurance she... Read More

Hello my name is Sarah. I lost my son at 35 weeks due to Preeclampsia. It was my first time pregnant.
Sunday April 20,2014: Easter Sunday, and also my mother's birthday. Around 3am I noticed my tummy and body alone just felt odd, and I didn't feel my son move who during sleeping hours was very active. My fiancé was at work he travels a lot and I texted him just telling him I didn't feel normal. Being this was my first pregnancy I didn't really think much of it bc I just thought maybe I was over stressing myself, so I laid back down and tried to go to sleep. I woke up around 10am: my belly was extremely hard and I still haven't felt my baby move so I really start to... Read More

Hello everyone, My name is Melissa and My fiance and I have two children. My first pregnancy with our daughter who is now 5 was completely uneventful. I felt great and never had any issues during or after delivery. When she was 4 and a half we decided it was time to have another baby but this time we needed the help of Clomid. It worked first cycle and I now have a son who will be one in a week. My pregnancy with him was hard from the start. Gushing bleeds from 8 weeks up until 13 weeks. Then I had gallbladder attacks at 20 weeks exact. Our daughter was a small birth weight baby so this pregnancy they kept a really close eye on me and the growth of our son. Every appointment was good and... Read More

This was my second pregnancy. I had been diagnosed while in labor with my first, though luckily we were both fine! We were not expecting to have our second so soon. I was breastfeeding and taking the mini pill but 4 months postpartum I was pregnant again! I found out at nearly 10 weeks. Worst three things for a long while was heartburn, "morning sickness" (took Zofran), and my hip which was a pain during my first pregnancy seemed much worse this second time (helped to go to the chiropractor for a while then towards the last couple of months just dealt with it). This time it started... Read More

Hi my name is Eloise, I am 20 years of age. I found out I was pregnant in November 2013. I had a beautiful first few weeks, no sickness or any bad symptoms. It was NYE when I first started getting pains in my upper abdominal area, but I thought nothing of it so I got send home early from work and just relaxed. If anything, I though it was trapped wind or something pregnancy-related. Then it stayed away for a few weeks untill I reached 18 weeks and I got severe pains this time so my partner took me to A&E at 3 am for them to send me away with antibiotics for a water infection. Anyway, a week later jon came in from work about 12 at night and I wad curled up in pain again and I was... Read More

Hi my name is Susan I would like to share my daughter's story. My daughter is 19 years old, she complete high school last May, and had plan to go to collage in the fall. She met this guy after school had ended and falling madly in love with him and found out in September she was going to have a baby. She was so happy her eyes would light up when she talk about the baby. She went to all of her appointments at the OB-GYN office and gave a urine sample every time. She was thirty-three weeks and her last two appointments at the OB-GYN office they told her she had high blood pressure, and she saw two different doctors, but both doctors sent her out of the office without any medication. She... Read More

I am doing my first "Promise Walk for Preeclampsia" on May 3, 2014! I'm excited to support the Preeclampsia Foundation's mission to reduce infant and maternal illness and death due to hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.Here's my story. I nearly died twice due to preeclampsia with my last pregnancy. I developed preeclampsia with my first pregnancy, in 2010/11. However, it was controlled and I delivered a healthy 6 lb. 9 oz. little boy at 38-weeks. With my second pregnancy (2013), my blood pressure was great (118/69) pretty much the entire pregnancy - until 32 weeks. Suddenly, my blood pressure spiked (to 145/90+). I was already high risk (advanced... Read More

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